1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a curtain holding device, and more particularly, a device for use in association with a shower curtain for the purpose of holding the curtain outwardly of the shower area.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In conventional structures consisting of a bathtub and shower installation, a shower curtain rod is installed above the outer edge of the bathtub so that the shower curtain, which is normally suspended by a plurality of curtain rings for slidable movement along the curtain rod, hangs downwardly and its lower portion is contained within the outer wall of the tub so as to prevent water from spraying or running over the outer wall of the tub and thus wetting the area of the bathroom outside of the bathtub. The closeness of the shower curtain to the user of the shower due to the narrowness of the tub may provide an uncomfortable feeling, particularly at about the elbow height of the user standing within the tub and taking a shower. Various structures, including a bowed shaped curtain rod, such as that shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,754,504, July 5, 1988, William F. Cellini, entitled "Shower Enlarger", have been designed to provide an enlarged shower area for an otherwise conventional bathtub and shower installation.
Also, a known phenomena which occurs during the use of a shower is for the shower curtain to be drawn inwardly from the bathtub wall and to billow against the shower user. This action is accompanied by a noticeable draft of air being drawn in to the shower area between the lower edge of the curtain and the inside of the bathtub wall. Various arrangements have been developed in an attempt to cause the lower edge of the shower curtain to adhere to the inside wall of the bathtub, including magnets carried in pockets along the lower edge of the shower curtain or open pockets which collect water so as to provide a weight at the bottom of the shower curtain such as in U.S. Pat. No. 2,173,993, Sept. 26, 1939, Leon H. Amdur, entitled "Shower Curtain"In U.S. Pat. No. 3,382,507, May 14, 1968, J. R. Micheau, entitled "Curtain Position Containing Means", there is shown elongated flexible members or braces which hang from the shower curtain support rod with the curtain and are provided with magnetic members at the bottom for urging the shower curtain against the inside of the outer side wall of the bathtub. In U.S. Pat. No. 2,120,155, June 7, 1938, J. W. Shera, entitled "Bath Curtain", there is shown a plurality of strings which are suspended from the shower curtain support rod and are provided with weights at their lower ends, the stings passing through straps affixed to the shower curtain so as to resist the inward billowing of the curtain during use of the shower. Generally, structures of the type described above have met with limited commercial success because of their having limited ability of preventing the flow of cold air into the shower area between the lower edge of the curtain and the tub and more particularly because they are not capable of preventing the mid-portion of the curtain from moving inwardly toward the shower area. If the structure is in the form a free hanging structure, it hangs straight down due to gravity and does not provide any positive horizontal force outward against the curtain, and accordingly, no extra elbow space is provided.
There are presently on the market devices which are attached to the shower curtain, particularly at the shower head end of the shower area, and are attached to the wall so as to hold the curtain for accomplishing a more complete seal between the curtain and the end wall, such as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,385,409, May 31, 1983, Robert H. File, entitled "Shower Curtain Bender". This type of structure must be of relatively complex design in order to permit the curtain to be folded tightly to one end of the shower rod when the curtain is opened. Moreover, this type of structure has substantially no effects on controlling the curtain against its undesirable functioning as described above. There is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 2,878,487, Mar. 24, 1959, L. Foote, entitled "Shower Curtain Adapter", a structure which is utilized at the shower head end of the curtain rod for performing the function of curling the curtain around the end of the shower area to prevent leakage and also for preventing the shower curtain from blowing in against the user. In this structure a wire type frame work is forced outwardly against the curtain by a lever which is hooked into an end eyelet of the curtain so that the weight of the curtain pivots the structure outwardly. Because of the light weight of most curtains utilized today, little positive force is provided for pivoting the structure outwardly, and the fact that it is utilized only at the end of the curtain, the structure is not capable of controlling the billowing of the curtain at the most important area, namely substantially midway between the length of the curtain and a significant distance downwardly from the curtain rod. Moreover, the structure shown in this arrangement, which is retained at the end of the curtain rod, affects the folding and hanging characteristics of the curtain when it is moved to the open position. French Patent Publication 2,514,632, Apr. 22, 1983, Yves Deveze, shows a structure including vertical members which are hooked at the upper end for placement over the shower curtain from within the shower area once the curtain is closed. The vertical members are shown as being joined by rigid cross members, which provide a weight for maintaining the device substantially vertical and resisting the curtain from being blown into the shower area. In this structure, the members which form the weight are affixed directly to the vertical members and therefore have limited effect on turning the members so as to swing outwardly from the shower area. The structure of this patent is designed to be hung on the support rod from within the shower area before a shower and then removed after a shower from within the shower area and before the curtain is opened.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,872,520, Mar. 25, 1975, William Tyconik, entitled "Curtain Support", shows a structure which is affixed to the curtain support rod and has a number of members extending therefrom for the purpose of holding the shower curtain back from the shower area. However, in order to provide the necessary force to maintain the curtain away from the shower area, it is necessary to drill a generally horizontal hole in the rail so as to receive a pin for locking the structure to the rail. The structure does not move automatically into place when the shower curtain is closed nor does it retract with the curtain when the curtain is opened. By removing the pin, the mounting portion of the structure allows the structure to rotate relative to the rail so as to hang freely from the rail.